Equinox
by Chrome Hearts
Summary: A series of Charli based one shots. May be depressing for some.
1. Day after Day

**Equinox  
_Day After Day  
_**

_Deception updates are coming soon.  
Be patient, please~_

* * *

Charli let out a content sigh, his lips curling into a smile. Carefully, he lifted the photo frame from the bookshelf, his long fingertips brushing softly against the glass cover. There, an old photo sat on display; Charli himself, smiling brightly, his arm wrapped tightly around her – around Sora's – waist. Proud and happy; that's what they were. Nothing would ever come between them.  
Nothing. No.  
Setting the photo frame back down on the bookshelf, Charli's chocolate eyes moved to the ones that surrounded it. They were all the same. Sora and himself. The same smiling, happy couple, not afraid to share their love with the world. Occasionally, they were joined by Charli's best friend Dimitry, although he preferred to remain hidden from the camera. His smile widened as he thought about the moments that he had spent with her – their happiest times were captured on camera; small reminders displayed proudly around his home. It was her that he was going to meet today. Her. Sora. His Sora. His love. Adjusting the pale orange scarf around his neck, Charli glanced once over at the memories on his bookshelf before crossing the living room. Slipping his shoes on, he closed his eyes; the smile growing on his face. Perhaps he should stop past the flower boutique? Hydrangeas – they were Sora's favourite. Yes, a bouquet of those would be beautiful – she'd simply adore them. Locking the door behind him, another content sigh escaped Charli's lips. He was on his way to meet up with the love of his life. Was there any reason to not smile?

~Day after Day~

There, Sora stood, her hands lightly clasped in Dimitry's cool hands. Without thinking, he traced his thumb lightly over the back of her hand, causing the red head to shiver.  
A moderate rain had begun to fall across the city, and Sora's vision was obscured by a later of matted hair that stuck to her face. Anxiously, she chewed on her bottom lip, slowly lifting her gaze to meet his. Dimitry's crimson eyes locked onto hers and immediately, Sora felt her heart beat quicken. "Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked, his voice low – silky; somewhat dangerous. Colour flushed into her otherwise pale cheeks as she thought about what they were doing. Of what they were doing to Charli. Sucking in a shaky breath, the girl nodded once in his direction. "Yes," she said. "I do." Dimitry closed his eyes and again, his thumb stroked the back of her hand – his grip on them tightening as though afraid she may run off. "And Charli," he continued in no more than a whisper. Leaning forward, he placed his head next to hers – his lips above her ear; his warm breath caused the girl to freeze, the breath catching in her throat. "Do you know how much this will hurt him?" Again, the girl nodded. "Yes," she replied quietly. "I know." Dimitry straightened himself up and opened his eyes. His lips curled upwards into a smirk as he looked the girl over. Bringing her hands to his lips, he kissed them gently. "Alright," he said, his voice low. "Go." Sora tilted her head to the side slightly. "But why?" "Go," Dimitry repeated, nodding his head slightly to the left. "Trust me. We'll talk more about what we're going to be doing to Charli later. For now, though," and he kissed her hands again, "you must leave. Until then, my _love_."  
Butterflies circled her insides nervously as Sora nodded once, turning her back to the tall man.  
As she walked off, Sora couldn't help but smile.  
A grim one, at that, but a smile nonetheless.  
Charli won't know - no, he never will.  
What he doesn't know can't hurt him.  
Sora's smile widened at the thought.  
Grim; strained; forced.  
No - it wouldn't hurt him.

~Day after Day~

Charli's bottom lip quivered slightly, his grip on the hydrangeas slackened - the flowers fell to the cold, wet ground with a dull thud.  
"Sora," he murmured, his heat felt like it was being ripped in two.  
Why was she with Dimitry - his best friend, of all people?  
He would have thought it was no more than a coincidence that the two had bumped into one another, if not for Dimitry kissing her hands.  
What was he playing at? What was he trying to achieve?  
Dimitry turned when he heard the quiet thud of the flowers as they connected with the concrete path.  
His lips curled up into a smug grin, his eyes held a glimmer that even Charli could not determine the meaning behind.  
"Ah, Charli," said the vampire, his voice dangerously low, "I didn't see you there, lurking in the shadows. What brings you here?"  
The brunette's mouth opened and closed several times, wordlessly before he was finally able to string a sentence together.  
"I was meeting up with Sora for lunch," his heart and voice were breaking.  
His eyes stung, his head throbbed. But nothing could compare to the pain in his chest.  
At this, Dimitry laughed. It was a callous sort of laugh, one that held no trace of amusement.  
"What a coincidence," said Dimitry, his tone overcast, "so was I."  
The two stood in silence for a moment before Dimitry bowed his head in a somewhat sarcastic manner.  
"I won't keep you then," he said, and turning his back, Dimitry slunk into the shadows of his surroundings leaving Charli standing there. Frozen. Unable to move. Large droplets of water ran down his face, catching in the damp orange fabric wrapped around his neck.  
And strangely enough, they tasted like salt.

~Day after Day~

Charli exhaled as he walked through the streets of Sweet Amoris, pausing at Sora's favourite coffee shop.  
The sleepless nights had taken a toll on him - thick, dark bags underlined his eyes and his eyelids drooped. He seldom smiled or bothered to worry about, well, anything, really.  
His hair was unkempt and looked like it had never been brushed. His clothes, usually immaculate were crumpled and dirty. His chocolate eyes had turned dull and long lost their usual sparkle.  
It was raining quite heavily but he did not care. The fabric of his sopping clothes clung to his skin as he lifted his head, glancing into the warm, inviting coffee shop.  
There, Sora sat, her back to the window, Dimitry at her side, sipping coffee together. Putting her mug on the table, Sora laughed at the remnants of her Chai Latte froth that clung to her top lip.  
Dimitry cupped her cheek in his hand, and with one gentle swipe of his thumb, the froth was no more.  
He began to laugh, tilting his head slightly, his eyes locking themselves onto Charli's drenched form.  
His lips tugged upwards into a sort of taunting grin and he watched, a sense of satisfaction washing across him as Charli hung his head and continue along the street in the pouring rain.

~Day after Day~

Sora sat, slumped in the corner of her apartment, her head in her hands. All around her, shards of broken glass, torn pages of books and upturned cushions littered the ground.  
A low pitched keening escaped her parted lips as she rocked back and forth, slamming her back harder than necessary against the wall as she did so.  
Her eyes, bloodshot and sore, burned as she strained them, forcing more tears to roll down her salt caked cheeks.  
The soft keening grew louder, more hysterical with time and soon, a wail ripped from her throat.  
Running her hands upwards and through her hair, a tangle of red wrapped itself around her fingers.  
Pulling her hands away from her head, Sora's bottom lip quivered as she looked at the matted clump of hair that she held in her hand.  
Another loud, shaky sob escaped her throat and she slumped back into the wall, her cheek resting against the smooth surface.  
Letting the hair fall to the floor, Sora, once again, buried her face in her hands.  
This was what she had created. This was her problem. She had to deal with it alone.  
Any hopes of Charli helping her through it, which he would do so unquestioningly… They were gone now.  
She had created this mess - she had to deal with it alone.  
There was no escaping it. No outrunning. No avoiding.  
She had to face it head on and pray that she would come out in the end.

~Day after Day~

The bright light burned into Sora's eyes and weakly, she lifted her hand to cover them, the fabric of her dress crinkling loudly as she did so.  
At her side stood a man in a mask. She couldn't see who he was - she couldn't tell how he was feeling.  
"Are you afraid, Sora?" he asked her softly and immediately, the girl nodded.  
"Don't be."  
Sora took a seat on the uncomfortable, hard bed and lay down, pulling her knitted cap off as she did so.  
"I can do this," she said shakily as she tried to slow her breathing. She pinched her eyes shut tightly to stop the burn of the white lights above. "I can."

~Day after Day~

Charli sat alone in his house - staring blankly at the dark table top. Next to him, his phone lit up, buzzing loudly against the solid surface in which it lay.  
Seeming to break him from his trance, Charli looked down at the small, brightly lit screen.  
"Dimitry?" he wondered, his voice hoarse. "What could he want?"  
His hand hovered above the phone for a moment before he turned away, letting it ring out.  
For ages afterwards, Dimitry would call, re-call and then call again.  
Charli knew that if he was being harassed by the older man, he would have given up a good hour and a half ago.  
But instead, Dimitry continued to call. Again and again the phone buzzed until Charli could take it no longer.  
Soundlessly he answered the phone and listened to Dimitry talk quickly - panicked - on the other side.  
Charli let his grip on the phone go and it fell to the table with a loud clank.  
Eyes wide with horror, cheeks stained with tears, Charli sprinted out of the house and down the garden path. He had to find Sora. He had to. This would be his last chance.

~Day after Day~

Sora's lips tugged upwards into a weak smile as her thumb ran over the small photo frame in her hand. There, her and Charli posed for the camera - dorky; happy; in love.  
Her hand hovered over the brunette before she ran her thumb over the photo once more.  
Tears ran down her cheeks as she smiled at the memory.  
The breath caught in her throat as she broke her gaze away from the photo that she held tightly in her hands. There, the man in the mask stood, looking down at her.  
"Okay," she managed to wheeze, "I'm ready."  
The man stooped down next to her, flicking a small tube before placing it, point first on the inside of her elbow.  
"This won't hurt at all."

~Day after Day~

Charli burst into the waiting room, his eyes darting around quickly.  
There, Dimitry sat, his head bent low, staring at his hands and immediately, Charli made his way over to the older man.  
"Where is she?" Charli demanded, his voice cracking. "Where's Sora?"  
Dimitry shook his head sadly and remained quiet for a few moments before answering.  
"She's already gone in," he murmured. "You answered your phone too late. If you had of done so when I first called, you would have got here in time to say goodbye."  
Charli took a step away from the dark haired man, his fists balled together tightly.  
"Charli," Dimitry said quietly, lifting his head; his eyes were noticeably bloodshot, despite how much he attempted to hissed them behind his fringe.  
"Sora really loved you. She didn't want to lie, but she thought it would be easier for you to let go if it was this way."  
Charli's eyes widened and he slumped down against the stark-white wall. His body shook with every sob that escaped his throat.

~Day after Day~

The doors of the operating room opened and the doctor wheeled the bed out slowly.  
Charli's head snapped up and he immediately got to his feet, rushing to the side of the bed. The second the sheets wrapped around his fingertips, he collapsed to the ground.  
The doctor tugged the mask down over his face and watched the man sob sadly.  
"I'm sorry," he said as the brunette wept. "There's nothing we could do to help her; the cancer, it-"  
Charli lifted his gaze slightly to survey the man through his foggy eyes.  
"I never got to say goodbye."  
The doctor let out a quiet sigh, grabbing something from the foot of the bed.  
"Here," he said as he passed it to Charli. "She wanted you to have this. It's the last thing she saw, although I'm sure she would have preferred the actual thing."  
Charli looked at the photo of the two of them, laughing, holding hands. Forever in love. The happiest they had been.  
Gripping the frame tightly in his hands, he fell away from the bed. And cried.  
His body ached from the effort but he couldn't stop.  
Lifting his tear stained face away from the photo, he watched as they wheeled Sora's bed away.  
"I love you," he murmured. "And I always will."

* * *

**Inspired by Big Bang's Haru Haru**


	2. Silence of Love

_It's short. Deal with it._

**Equinox**_**  
Silence of Love**_

* * *

_Moments. _That's what life was. A series. A montage of moments passing by in slow motion.  
Always just in front of you, but always just beyond your reach. That's what they were. No matter for how long I wished to have at least one new beginning, one fresh start, it was always the same.  
What does family mean to you? What does love mean to you?  
For me, love and family is the same thing. I'm the oldest with two younger brothers to feed, to keep alive. To ensure they're always happy.  
That is why I work so hard; that is why I work so long. Because, it's all worth it in the end, because even if I got just the faintest trace of a smile from the two, it made it all worth it.  
Willi and Wenka - they're my brothers.  
Mischievous, young, and still unfamiliar with the ways of the world. There are many things that they don't understand, and, I don't think they ever will.  
Although, I don't blame them. I long to be able to hug them; to tell them everything will be okay when they're upset; but I can't.  
No matter how much I wish for them to be happy, I… I just can't. My brothers - they don't understand all that I do for them.  
And, to be honest, I'm certain they don't understand me, either.  
Every morning, I would wake up early and prepare them a healthy breakfast to get them through the day. Not that they'd think twice about it. Plates were scraped clean and the mess was left behind for me to clean.  
Every morning, I would accompany them to school, ensure they got there safely - see them off.  
Grinning, I'd offer them a thumbs up.  
_"Study hard, okay?"_  
Their reaction was always the same. With eyebrows raised in annoyance or embarrassment, they'd turn, their backs to me and stalk off into the school grounds without so much as a backwards glance or a goodbye.  
I'd always watch them disappear into the school and hang around a few moments in hopes of them running back out to apologise; to actually say something. They never did.  
Letting out a quiet sigh, my shoulders fell - I looked at the ground.  
_"I just want the both of you to be happy."_

~Silence of Love~

I knew that Willi and Wenka wished for a normal brother.  
They wished it all the time, and I frequently overheard them saying it, too.  
It wasn't my fault - I chose not for my life to be this way. But, that's just how it was. And I learned to deal with it.  
I was the brother who would always be there to listen to them - yet, I was the brother they would never listen to.  
Willi snuck home after school and hid in his room. He didn't say hello, he didn't even look at me.  
_"How was your day?"_ I asked, reaching out as he walked past. _"Where is your brother?"  
_ Offering me nothing but the cold shoulder, he crossed the living room and slammed his bedroom door shut after him.  
That night, I stayed up well after Willi had fallen asleep, waiting; waiting for Wenka to get home. For hours I sat, my hands clasped together, my eyes locked firmly on the floor.  
For hours, I didn't move - I couldn't. What if he didn't come home?  
The moon was high in the sky and the fog of early morning had finally began to settle did I hear the front door creak open.  
Quickly, I scrambled to my feet and hurried to meet him. Annoyed, Wenka stared up at me.  
"What do you want?" he asked.  
I narrowed my eyes, furious - my lips pressed together into a thin line.  
_"How can you stay out for so long, without even a second thought as to letting me know? How can you possibly think it's okay to try and sneak back inside at this time of morning?"_ I pointed at the watch on my wrist and threw my arms into the air, exasperated.  
Wenka's eyes locked with mine and he scowled.  
"Why can't you just be normal for once?" he snapped, "you're so embarrassing!"  
Pushing past me, he stalked off up the stairs to his room.

~Silence of Love~

I sat alone at the small kitchen table, a chocolate sponge cake on the table in front of me. Willi occupied himself by sitting on the couch, as far away from me as possible, his thumbs tapping on the buttons of the small hand-held console furiously.  
Letting out a quiet sigh, I glanced down at the small cake. Iced to perfection, it was not complete without elegant white chocolate script that covered the surface. _'I wish you every happiness on this special day.'  
_ Wenka had been upstairs for quite some time - I don't understand why he isn't spending time with the only family he has on his birthday. Maybe I should go see if he's okay?  
A loud thud outside made me freeze. That sound- it…  
Moving quickly outside, I made my way around the side of the small house. There, on the ground lay Wenka; spread-eagled, unmoving and horribly injured. He must have been trying to sneak out to see his friends - his head it was…  
A loud howl escaped my lips as I held him close to me. A hospital - I needed a hospital.  
Willi, who had followed me out ran back into the house, returning several moments later with towels. As I held the white haired boy, the youngest attempted to wrap towels around his head and limbs to try and clot the wounds. Getting to my feet, I adjusted the weight in my arms and ran.  
We had no money for a car, or a scooter. The nearest hospital was quite a fair walk and… Wenka….  
What if he didn't make it?

~Silence of Love~

Wenka was taken almost immediately from my arms and moved into a room where Willi and I were not allowed to follow.  
Two doctors approached me the second he disappeared from view and held me back.  
"I'm afraid you cannot follow - this situation is dire."  
At that, I broke down. Howling, fighting against them to try and be by his side.  
_"I don't have very much money,"_ I cried, trying my best to explain, _"but I have a house! You can have it, you can have it all! Just please save my brother!"_  
The doctors watched my antics for a few moments, trying to understand before turning to Willi.  
"He's a mute," Willi said quietly, looking up sadly.  
One doctor nodded before explaining the severity of Wenka's state - the small boy was losing blood; and fast.  
I waved my arms furiously to get their attention, tears streaming down my cheeks.  
_"Take my blood!"_ I screamed. _"Take it, just save him! I want to see him smile once more!"_

~Silence of Love~

_Moments._

It was Willi's voice who I heard first; it started as a quiet, frantic squeak as he scampered across the room. His small hand wrapped around mine and he didn't let go. "Charli," he cried, "Charli, please. You knew you couldn't give blood - your heart rate was too high… Your heart - it can't keep up."

_That's all life is._

A slight way off, I heard Wenka shift under the bed covers - the spring mattress creaking as he moved his weight. The breath caught in his throat and he let out a long wail.

_A series._

Wenka was sitting with me now. He reached out and touched my arm with a quivering hand; the pulse oximeter felt cold, hard and unwanted compared to the warmth of his skin. I felt him flinch - the drip in which he was attached to must have pulled against the tender flesh on his arm.

_A montage. _

"Charli," he managed to croak, his breath wavered uncontrollably as he spoke. "Why? Your heart, it's collapsing."

_All leading up to these final seconds._

I forced a smile, although I doubt they could see. _"Because, it's my duty to look after you."_  
I heard Wenka collapse onto the side of the bed. He buried his head in the white linen and wept. Willi's grip on my hand tightened and he didn't let go. He didn't let go until the very end.

_Moments._

_Just let them all go._

* * *

**_Inspired by some sad as fuck Indonesian life insurance ad._**


End file.
